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Troy won't change how he plays; how much longer can he last?

The injury on Sunday wasn't as serious as it first looked and according to sources he could have come back in the game but Tomlin held him out. Fortunately Troy dodged another bullet but even with that said Troy is going to be who he is since he came into the league 10 years ago. He's not going deviate from the style of play that got him to where he is today. Most players would say the same thing, it's football and you have to be who you are.

You wonder how many more years Troy has left and if he'll be able to finish out the new deal he signed this year...

A nerve impingement has caused Ravens safety Ed Reed to contemplate retirement in recent seasons. Now, you have to wonder whether concussions will cause Steelers safety Troy Polamalu to do the same, or at least cause him to alter his reckless style of play.

Polamalu, 30, is a physical player but he needs to be a smart one as well with this situation. These head injuries are starting to pile up, which is a disturbing trend when you hear about the effects on players later in life.

Polamalu
The latest one for Polamalu came Sunday night, when he left during the opening drive after taking a blow to the head and did not return. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin confirmed that the 2010 NFL defensive player of the year was experiencing "concussion-like symptoms."

This is the second time in seven games that Polamalu has left a game with head trauma. Last time, he returned the next week. It will be interesting to see if he comes back as quickly this time.

Polamalu appeared to be lobbying his coaches to get back onto the field during the game. He stood on the sideline with his helmet on during the first quarter, and he still stayed suited up in the second quarter.

"We just wanted to err on the side of caution; that's why we didn't let him return to the game," Tomlin said after the game. "I don't know at this juncture if it was a concussion."
Polamalu's history of concussions has to be taken into account. According to published reports, Polamalu had at least three concussions while at USC and two while playing high school football.

Of course, the initial reaction is to figure out how Polamalu's absence would impact the Steelers. Pittsburgh has struggled without him, going 6-7 when Polamalu missed games in 2009 and 2010.

But, at some point, Polamalu has to consider the impact of these head injuries on his life after football.

I have always bitched about the way he tackles with his head down. If he continues then unfortunately he won't stay healthy. At this point in his career he needs to protect himself to preserve what years he has left. He probably has 2 more years left if he is lucky with the way he plays.

James Harrison - "Right now, you know, some people may want to jump on the Steelers bandwagon.
Don't do that. We don't need you. We didn't need you at the beginning, we don't need you now."

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Ironic that you brought up Mundy taking over for Clark next season. He could in fact be taking the place of TP. He is at a point where he has to look out for his long-term health. I certainly could not blame him if he walked away after the season.

Troy was clearly going to take out the legs of the bigger player on that play, rather than wrap him up. A lot of DB's do that against bigger players because it's a pretty effective way to slow down somebody that's twice your size. Now you could argue that maybe he just wraps up the lower legs/ankles of the player rather than firing in like a missile. However he plays on instinct and how many other times do you see DB's diving to knock out the legs of the ball carrier.

It really depends on his concussions and how serious they become. Any concussion is pretty serious, so I'm not sure what the "mild-concussion" symptoms are, and all that other jargon we hear every week. I see Troy playing for two more years after this season.

Who knows if he even had a concussion this last game. Bouchette said he was dizzy for 30 secs and then fine and could've returned but the steelers played it safe. Sure doesn't sound like a concussion to me, just had his bell rung a little.

When I saw the hit, and then rewound it about 10 times (thanks DVR technology), I thought he suffered more of a stinger than anything else. It was not a head on knee collision; it was more head & shoulders (no pun intended), knee collision.

Troy is not likely going to change his style of play. He's on defense and he wants to win. Being on defense means you have to do what it takes to stop whoever is carrying the ball. Play hard and play rough.

Pro Bowl safety Troy Polamalu said he is aware of the medical research involving concussions and understands his style of play could be responsible for his recent head injuries.

He also said he is probably under a lot more scrutiny than most because of his history of concussion-related injuries, including two in the past six games.
But he said he "absolutely" can't dwell on that when he is on the playing field and is doubtful he will change the aggressive and explosive style of play he exhibits in a game.

"I don't know if it's possible, at this point, to change a style of play," Polamalu said. "That's the case for anybody in the NFL, even regarding the rules and fines that we have [for illegal hits]. We're instinctual players at this point. Of course, we're professional athletes, but it's still tough to change these habits we've formed since we were 8 years old."

Polamalu spoke Friday for the first time since he had what was termed "concussion-like symptoms" while making a tackle on the opening series Sunday night in Kansas City. Polamalu was removed from the game and didn't return, but he said he felt fine right after making the tackle on Chiefs offensive tackle Steve Maneri and could have returned to the game.

Polamalu declined to say what type of symptoms he experienced, but team sources have told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette he was dizzy for about 30 seconds. Those sources said he was "lucid and clear" by halftime and could have returned to the game.
Coach Mike Tomlin said the team wanted to "err on the side of caution" when they refused to let Polamalu return to the game.

It was never determined that Polamalu had a concussion. Nonetheless, it was the second time in six games Polamalu had what the Steelers termed "concussion-like symptoms."

Polamalu has practiced each of the past two days and will start Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field.

"I'm well aware of the research, well aware of the frenzy that has kind of surrounded this particular injury," Polamalu said. "I also realize with amount [of head injuries] I've had I'm probably under a lot more scrutiny and we're under a lot more scrutiny than other organizations."

Polamalu was asked if that scrutiny was being overblown.

"I don't know, to be honest. There's probably no more serious injury that someone can have than a concussion. You can function well with [injuries to] legs and arms and shoulders, but not with the brain. However, there is definitely a lot of attention that has been brought into this than we have had in the past."

Polamalu was injured when he came up on a swing pass to Maneri and hit the 290-pound offensive lineman with a low torpedo-like tackle -- the type of tackle Polamalu has been known to make as one of the top safeties in the NFL.
Asked if his head injuries were related to his style of play, Polamalu said: "Absolutely. That style of tackling does put you at risk. In those situations, I don't know how anybody could have done anything different, being third-and-1 and an offensive lineman in the flat."